Abandoned by people, cherished by lake [Photo by the author]

PHOTOGRAPHY| TRAVEL| REFLECTIONS

Exploring Silence Beside a Forgotten Boat

May-June Six Word Photo Story Challenge: “Explore”

Half-submerged, holding countless untold journeys ashore

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What catches our attention when we travel?

Is it always the grand landscape, or sometimes the quiet detail that tends to be missed?

Can a lonely, partially submerged boat become the most memorable part of a journey?

These questions immediately surfaced on a peaceful boat ride with my family when I noticed it.

Quite unexpectedly!

A small wooden boat, half-submerged near the shore.

It looked abandoned, yet strangely at peace, as though the lake had slowly given it a peaceful home over the years. While our boat moved forward, that little boat remained almost still, gently swaying with the ripples.

We were gliding gently across the lake, enjoying the cool breeze and the reflection of the hills on the lake water while conversing with the ever-smiling, chirpy, young boatman.

I was simply soaking in the enthralling beauty of the hilly monsoon afternoon.

Somehow, it drew my eyes more than the vast lake around it.

I couldn’t stop looking. My thoughts wandered.

Who had last rowed it?

How many stunning sunrises had it witnessed?

Who had anchored it there?

As our boat drifted farther away, it dawned on me that I was looking at a story.

Our boat continued across the lake. The waterlogged one stayed behind.

Long after our boat ride ended, it struck me that we sailed across the lake that afternoon, but it was the weathered wooden boat that stayed with me.

I had explored the lake but the timeworn boat reclaimed by the lake had quietly explored my heart, soul, and thoughts.

The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes- Marcel Proust

Thank you very much Mary Chang Story Writer for this beautiful space — Six Word Photo Story Challenge.

Many thanks for the intriguing May — June prompt, Sandi Parsons.

And thanks much Vidya Sury, Collecting Smiles.

[embed]Explore: May-June 2026 Prompt May-June Six Word Photo Story Challenge: “Explore”medium.com

Light and peace 🌕🪔

©️**Moon & Deep, 2026**